SULA Lightship - A New Chapter at Gloucester Docks

Every now and then a project comes along that feels special. For SOLV it was the chance to work on the LV14 SULA Lightship for our old clients Colin and Viv Brooks. Colin and Viv took the bold step to buy and live in the LV14 moored in the heart of Gloucester Docks. You can’t miss her: bright red and a floating landmark, full of character with a history that stretches back to her days guiding sailors at sea.

What is a lightship?

Lightships are vessels equipped with a bright light to warn ships of hazards like sand banks and submersed rock formations and to help ships navigate the waters - imagine a lighthouse mounted on a ship. Lightships around the UK were mostly found near sand-banks as no permanent structures could be built on the sand.

As lightships were “on station” most of the time and only came to port for maintenance every 3 years, most lightships didn’t have engines and were towed into position by tugs and anchored close to the hazard. Lightships were manned by 5-8 men who stayed on board for 2 weeks.

History

The first evidence of lightships can be found in documents mentioning “floating lights” at the entrance of the ancient Egyptian harbour of Alexandria during the time of Cleopatra. Later, the Romans had Galley ships with fire baskets on a mast and in the 15th Century the Dutch had lightships to guide fishing boats back to harbour at dusk.

The first lightship in the UK; the Nore - a converted trawler with 2 iron baskets burning wood, was positioned on the Thames estuary in 1731. By the beginning of the 20th Century there were 350 lightships worldwide.

Over time the wooden fire baskets were replaced with oil lamps and later multiple parabolic reflectors to focus the light into a beam and revolving mechanisms to produce flashes of light.

When trading on the west coast increased, cities like Bristol and Gloucester became significant ports and lightships were needed to help ships navigate the Bristol Channel and Severn Estuary.

Between 1980 and 1990 all lightships were converted to unmanned vessels, solar powered and remotely operated from shore. With the advent of sophisticated SatNav systems on commercial vessels most lightships have been replaced with buoys.

The LV14 SULA Lightship

The LV14 was commissioned by the Humber Conservancy Board, built by Cook, Welton and Gemmel and was launched and stationed near Spurn sandbank in the Humber Estuary in 1959.

The design of the vessel was unique in 2 ways; she was equipped with a Fresnel lens system for the main light and a 360-degree foghorn on top of the wheel house.

The ship was active until 1985, when she was sold to serve as the club house for the Beaucette Yacht Club in Guernsey. In 1988 she was sold to Conwy, North Wales as a tourist attraction by 1990 she moved to Milford Haven and used as a museum ship. In 1997 she was sold to Irish tourist investors and towed to Ireland where she was laid up for future plans. In 2007 the lightship underwent a 3-year restoration and has been moored in Gloucester Docks since 2010.

The lightship to retains almost all of its original features including the Fresnel Lens and the foghorn.

So, what did we do?

Colin and Viv bought LV14 as a retirement project, but they also needed to generate an income.

LV14 was being used as a complementary health centre with living accommodation, SOLV architects were brought on board to submit planning for change of use to living accommodation with bed and breakfast and a training/conference facility to educate visitors to the docks about the history of LV14 and lightships.

The challenges associated with a ship moored to a dock are a world away from a house or other standard building, who would have thought you’d need to carry out a flood risk assessment for a ship.

Planning permission was achieved and Colin and Viv have transformed the vessel into the UK’s only stay-aboard lightship with luxurious accommodation and an unforgettable experience for guests.

Work on LV14 never stops and the unique Fresnel lens was brought back to life in 2020 to illuminate the sky for the first time in 20 years, the restoration continues…

SULA has become a defining landmark in Gloucester Docks with many visitors each year and SOLV are privileged to have been part of the journey.